Hi everyone, I started this about 2 months ago and did 3 days… then, bad day, and then my emotional eating took over and I broke … then felt terrible and haven’t been able to get going again.. I want to do this so badly – what have others done to tackle the emotional eating aspect? Would love some tips and tricks. I have 50kg to lose…

Hi healthyanna,
The first step is to read the book. There’s so much information in it and it helps prepare you for the 8 weeks (or really for low carb mediterranean style lifestyle). There are helpful tips concerning cleaning out kitchen cupboards etc and stocking them with BSD friendly foods.
Then it’s a matter of following the core principles of the BSD (the diet, exercise and mindfulness meditation.) Personally I’ve found mindfulness meditation very helpful in combatting emotional eating – well worth a try if you don’t already do it.
It’s very important to be kind to yourself. Use the forums for support and if you do have a slip up try and return to the BSD (all 3 principles) as soon as you can. We all have slip ups but it’s how we deal with them that can make a huge difference on this journey.
There’s a quiz in the book to take to see how you’re coping with the BSD. Remember that if the fast 800 isn’t for you, there’s the 5:2 and the BSD way of life as alternatives.
I wish you the very best on your BSD journey.

I have used food to support me emotionally since childhood, probably most of us have in some way or other. The big change for me though has been not to see any slip -ups as catastrophes. Life will always chuck in events where you can’t eat the ideal way. There will always be days when you want to pull the duvet over your head and stay in bed. There will always be celebrations that demand cake. I know for a fact that Dr Mosley DOES EAT CAKE! He just doesn’t do it every day or even all that often. This is the state of mind we need to get to. That its alright to make an exception once in a blue moon and it doesn’t have to lead to a massive bender.

What I try to do now when I tempted is ask myself some questions; will it pass if I make a cup of tea or read a magazine or do something to distract myself? Do I really think eating that food will make me feel better? If I eat it, am I prepared to live with the consequences? Its fine if I am prepared to accept the consequences, that’s what grown ups do. If I am going to guilt trip myself then it simply isn’t worth it as the pleasure will be spoiled. If I do decide to eat the naughty stuff, I really enjoy it for what it is but I no longer let it spiral as I am not prepared to deal with the consequences if they are severe.

This is a period of learning – and unlearning – very deeply ingrained habits. If I went on a bender after every slip-up I have had over the last twelve weeks I would probably be two stone heavier not a stone and a half lighter! So get your wheels back on your wagon and keep your toolkit close to hand! You don’t need to be perfect, just better than before!

Healthyana, try not to beat yourself up if you do have a bad day and eat more than you intended or which wasn’t exactly healthy. I think we all do to some extent. (I *may* have had wine last night …) Just try not to let a temporary blip become more than that.

Thank you everyone for your comments. I am a perfectionist by nature, and when I ‘stuff up’ it leads to constant bingeing until I get the courage to start again… then I expect perfectionism.. the cycle continues. I like the idea of just being better than before… I really appreciate your comments and wish you all the very best too! Thanks

Hey Healthyanna,

Me and you both girl!! Cake and chocolate with happiness, a full 2 litre tub of ice cream for sadness. Crisps & biscuits for frustration & stress. I mean its a menu for every emotion and its been like that all my life. Being diagnosed with type 2 was like a big smack in the face with a garden spade. I have a horrible histories of type 2 in my family, I know what can happen to me, If I choose a biscuit instead of an apple, I’ve seen it first hand and it is like running through hell with gasoline pants on.
I have been on my knees, grieving for my food (but really my emotional attachment to it) and am now at a point where, I have to take every hour as it comes. I have my breakfast at 11am. My lunch at 4pm and my dinner at 9pm. I have found this has combatted my worry of going hungry. My fella has bought me chocolate and I’ve told him to stop sabotaging me. He said it has fruit and nut in it! REALLY! I gave the chocolate to my son and got an apple. I told my fella, if you want to buy me something nice, buy me some fresh strawberries or blueberries, which he did the next day.
I am less emotional now, since my diagnosis at the end of feb, I’ve lost a stone in weight. It has egged me on to do the bsd. I am going to try and be good, but I do finally have it in my head that the biscuit isn’t worth it. Stick at it, your downfall is temporary, get back to it immediately, and you will have more control over your emotional state. Don’t let your moment of madness, spiral you down out of control, beating yourself up, putting yourself down, which will then make you say ‘ well, I’ve blown it, I may as well continue to blow it’ cos blowing it then becomes your excuse to not take control. The best thing to say is. ‘I’ve blown it, crap, ok well I’m not going to blow it again’. My sister used to say ‘I start my diet on a Monday and if I blow it by Wednesday, I have to wait till Monday to restart’ ERM! no you don’t, you restart immediately. She’s 2 stone heavier than me and prediabetic, until she gets it, she will remain in a bad cycle. You can get control, If I can, anyone can, trust me on that. X

Hi Healthyana — with all the free time I have these days since I am not so busy eating (😜) I have found myself pondering how this all got to the point where i didn’t have any control and I was eating too much and the wrong stuff every single day…. And I have decided that it is a two part problem, both physical and mental — first, i (and probably you) have an overly active insulin system and I have had it since childhood. My memories are filled with sugar moments and trying to get sugar and walking all the way to town to get sugar and even eating frozen concentrated orange juice because that was the only sugar available in our house (LOL!!!) (my mom was a early adopter of healthy eating!). I am a horse owner and in the horse world we call them “cresty ponies” — these are the horses/ponies with big, thick necks (insulin indicators I have heard) and they can survive and stay fat on half a flake of hay per day. So, I figure I am a cresty pony always looking for more hay (sugar). That’s the physical side. Then the second half of this one/two knock out punch is the psychological side — my family was chaotic , competitive and stressful growing up and I used food to calm myself. I just took those two unhealthy states into adulthood and have struggled ever since. The only thing that “saved” me from super obesity was I had some of that competitiveness in sports. But I was still fat. Just fit and fat. More fat than fit! And getting worse as I turned sixty, went through menopause and had a few injuries. The BSD diet has been a perfect answer for me and just might be for you. Don’t give up. Dedicate just 8 weeks to following it (it won’t be without slip up, just start again) and THEN evaluate. Suspend your critical thinking for just 8 weeks.

Hi All,
I know this doesn’t sound good but I’m happy to find a thread for second attempts. I’m going start my second attempt tomorrow.

I messed up today after a week of being so good on my 800 calorie BSD.

I know why I messed up, I didn’t get enough sleep last night, just three hours. Woke up annoyed and cranky and tired. Couldn’t go back to sleep it was so warm. Then made a bad breakfast choice, had smoked mackerel and coffee because anything more would have gone past 200 calories. I was hungry an hour later and just kept pushing it away…I was ok for a while then my groceries got delivered and I started cooking for the week so I have healthy food to eat. They stuck a complimentary packet of some promotional crisps in my shopping I ended up eating it 🙁

Was so upset think I messed up counting the calories on my portions too now I don’t know if I guess or throw it all away.

The cherry on the cake, I was so sure since I’ve messed I’ll just eat as much salmon and veg as I want then my housemate brought back chocolates from Belgium n ate two truffles.

Locked myself in my room now with a cup of tea…

California girl your post motivated me to just suck it up, accept its been a bad day and commit to starting over.

If I have pastrami and coffee for breakfast I’m ok, anything else I feel I might murder someone after an hour I’m so hungry. What do you guys do for breakfast?

Hi bumblebee
My breakfast can be; full fat Fage yoghurt with a portion of mixed soft fruit eg strawberries , cherries , blueberries & raspberries. I top with 2 walnuts & a spoonful of sliced almonds & goji berries & a spoon of Waitrose mixed seeds , pumpkin, linseed, sunflower & sesame to help with constipation.
I like poached egg & salmon. Hard boiled egg & prosciutto or Serrano ham. Scrambled eggs & fresh tomatoes. Bacon & egg & mushrooms. Smoked haddock & scrambled eggs (brunch). Cooked ham & small piece of cheese. Spanish omelette ( cook onions, tomatoes, bell pepper & eggs). Eggs are filling & long lasting food wise.
Hope this is helpful.
Don’t beat yourself up. We’re all working through issues & doing a lot of self analysis it seems on this diet/way of life. Our minds & bodies are going to be a lot healthier. Keep on keeping on. The wagon awaits.
Eureka

Hi healthyanna & bumblebee,
I know where you are coming from – my emotional eater fouls things up from time to time. Last time was actually last weekend, and I’ve been BSD-ing since mid-January. But I confessed my “sin” on this forum and read people’s advice and got my head together and planned what I was going to have & stuck to it. The warmer weather made it a bit easier to drink more so that helped. I even had a continuation of the catastrophes that had precipitated my last pigout but this time I didn’t turn to food to make myself feel better.

And you know what, today I weighed myself and I have not only lost the extra weight I’d put back but I’ve dipped below 11stone for the first time in a long time AND I have lost a grand total of 1.5stone since I started this diet.

There’s a lot of good advice in the posts above so I can’t really add anything to them. Just give yourselves a chance – draw up your plan of action, and draw up a plan for what to do if you do go AWOL from the diet. Remember, you are in control – not the food.

Good luck!

Hi Eureka,

Thanks those ideas are helpful, I’ve not tried eggs yet on the BSD. I bought some yoghurt and almond flakes, will get a small tub of berries tomorrow and 6 eggs…hello wagon I’m climbing back on 🙂

Thanks Rozy,

Well done on your weight loss that’s super cool!!!

I love the action plan idea I’ll do one right now!! 🙂

Hi RozyDozy
Well done on that 1.5 stone weight loss. Instead of going AWOL, we’ll grant a leave of absence if needed. Welcome back

Hi bumblebee
Yippee ki-yay!

I still dont know how I went blind and ate the crisps and chocolate….no more naugthy.

I double checked my cupboards now…the only carbs I have is half a cup of quinoa…doubt I’ll end up eating raw quinoa so I’ll just leave it there for when friends come over as emergency food 🙂

Action plan done… To ensure I don’t have dumb excuses I make to myself for eating rubbish I’ve already calculated and entered tomorrow’s food and calorie allowance into my diary. Hello day 1….here I come!!!

Hi bumblebee,
It’s virtually 24hrs since your last posting – I hope Day 1 went well…..

Awwwww Rozy you’re so sweet!

Thank you so much for asking.
Day 1 went well, stayed on the wagon n feeling good for it….realised boredom n staying home is my enemy, at work I’m fine.

Did 790 cal today, feel full so not going to hunt down 10 calories… Thinking of it as my contribution to the mishap 🙂

How was your day?

Hi, glad Day 1 was successful! Like you, I find being at work can be helpful – at home I have to keep occupied – do anything, even housework – to distract myself from thoughts of food.

As for my day – I’ve been a bit headachey (too hot yesterday, and I got hot again today mowing the lawn) but it’s passing off now. I allowed myself a bit more to eat today and I’m sure that has helped with the bad head. (That’s not falling off the wagon, that’s just being kind to myself!)

Hope you are planning Day 2. Failing to plan = planning to fail!

Good luck – take it one day at a time. Keep going!

Hi RozyDozy,

Yep happy to get on the scale this morning and see 400grams off, was a bit down for a few seconds then thought, that’s almost a brick of butter minus hundred grams (I was able to visualise 100g because I bake alot – well I used to) so then I felt ok.

Yep need to find ways to keep busy when I’m at home. I bought a mindfulness colouring book and some felt tip pens to occupy myself when my hands need to be busy doing something. I’ve also cut down smoking so need to keep hands busy.

I agree with being kind to yourself, some days 800 calories feel so little so I’ve decided next time I feel hungry instead of eating junk I will just have another portion of real BSD food instead or eat some carrot sticks and hummus. As long as I stay away from the carbs it should be ok. How is your head feeling today? I noticed Saturday I didn’t have morning coffee I ended up with a headache so I’m guessing I have some kind of caffeine dependency – could be wrong ha ha.

Yes thank you Rozy, I planned last night for breakfast and Lunch with an open-ish option for dinner – the cooked veg portion I have prepared with either some home cooked salmon or some feta cheese and olives – Probably end up with the salmon as its rainy and going shopping before I get home sounds a bit of a drag.

I was however a bit disappointed, the shake I normally drink has sucralose in it. I never stopped to think to read the ingredients in the 4 months I’ve been drinking it. Today I opened a new pouch and up to now all I checked is the calorie content and the 103 calories per serving made me happy. I tried to take a quick look through the book index to read up on sucralose but my gut tells me it sounds like sucrose so its probably evil – I need to find someone to give it to or its £20 in the bin…maybe send an email round at work 🙂

Lunch I’m having a portion of my cooked vegetables (120 cal) and a slice of Edam Cheese from Sainsbury’s (78 Cal), got my 25 calorie afternoon snack of dried mushroom and seaweed soup (made the packs up myself to be sure what goes in) Thinking in a week or so I’ll try to stop the in between but afternoons get me peckish and the soup does the trick to keep me focussed.

Hope you have a great day Rozy!

Good for you, gal!
I’ve just posted a message about an article on BBC iWonder – have a look at it. Bite size chunks of useful advice about why people put weight back on – and what to do about it (basically, developing good habits).

I’m having my lunch (deviated from the cheese and having turkey breast instead but still under 300 cals)
Reading the article on BBC iWonder…80% of those who lose weight put it back on again that is so scary – going to finish reading it then go for a walk to get some steps in my food diary too 🙂

Hope your day is going well so far.

The day is a bit damp – went up to the allotment to plant out the first of my runner beans and got wet walking back! But it looks like I will have a good strawberry crop… Otherwise I’m waiting for a call from the garage to say my car is ready for collection (the car was the source of 2 of my stress-inducing disasters in recent days).

Thought the BBC article was interesting in that even when people put on most of the weight they’ve lost, they are still doing themselves more good than if they hadn’t lost the weight in the first place. So it is always worth making the effort.
And it makes the point that good habits can take time to develop.

“80% of those who lose weight put it back on again”
The trouble with that is, the vast majority of folk have lost weight and put it back on have done it on low fat diets with no maintainence plan to follow.
This is different in that there is a maintainence plan, but not only that, cutting the carbs for 8 weeks tends to stop you wanting to eat them, lots of people who have completed the course will tell you that their former likings for sweets and high carb foods have vanished so that in itself will help keep the weight off.

London has been rainy, muggy and miserable all day…Its almost 4pm and I’ve not felt the need to have my soup yet which is great I can try some for dinner.

Strawberries….runner beans…growing them yourself…Ooooh that has to be so exciting! Hope your car is ready and no more stress days.

on the article – yes always good to make the effort, i feel so empowered and strong when I am doing something good for myself. I feel like each second is an investment into the rest of my life – just need to cut the smoking out now ha ha! I read somewhere once it takes 10 days to break an old habit and 11 days to implement a new one – I am thinking of doing something that will ensure even on weekends I can stay focussed – only thing left to do is think of what. Hmmm

Bill makes a very valid point about low fat diets & their lack of a maintenance diet & that the BSD does have a maintenance side. I think that is why I am still following it after 3 & 1/2 months and expect to be for a good while yet. It is a long-term thing – just what we need for developing good habits.

As for the car, just had a phone call to say it’s ready for collection. Didn’t dare ask how much the bill would be. Whatever the financial damage, I know that stuffing my face won’t help! So, Rose, be strong while wandering round Tesco. And bumblebee, keep on feeling empowered.

Dunno how I missed that post…Thanks Bill you made me feel better! A maintenance plan means not having to worry on holidays, dates and going out and socialising with friends so now I feel less scared.

I have a yukky headache I can’t shake and feeling a bit foggy and dull in my brain which would be fine if it was a Wednesday and I’m travelling but today its just UGH.

Yay good news Rozy, happy the car is ready, you’re so right – eating doesn’t fix it but for me I think it was a coping mechanism of stuffing down my fears and stress with food and if i ate enough i pushed it down…starting a new job I’m scared out of my mind I made a terrible mistake but I’ve decided not to let a mistake make me fat. Instead I will look at this as an opportunity to show myself I can stay in control and find a solution that is good all round and wont harm my health and sanity – I looked at my weekly shop bill as compared to previous weeks I spent £20 less this week. So in the long run I can see myself saving money being on the BSD – maybe I’ll put those savings in a jar for a bikini beach holiday 😉

Hi again, bumblebee,
You sound like you’ve got your head screwed on right! Keep thinking like that & you won’t go far wrong.
Sorry you’ve got a bad head – if you’re feeling a bit foggy, don’t forget to keep hydrated (that’s one of my problems).

Car is back in my garage – still to settle up with the garage, but I’m sure it will cost more than the car is actually worth! 🙁
Oh well, I’ll be researching a new one, so long as this one lasts long enough to get my finances ready!

Take care.

Hi Rozy,

I have started reading the BSD book again today – I realise I have not done the exercises as I should, don’t feel motivated to do those but going to try harder. Food wise its going well – Day 3 back on the wagon today and loss of 700grams so far this week. I was not very happy thinking half way in and that’s all I lost so I went to the fridge to get my blocks of butter out and looked at them for a bit – a big block plus a small block minus 50 grams – told myself that’s the fat I’ve lost so far and took a few repetitions but it sank in.

Keeping hydrated is my greatest challenge so I bought a 500ml bottle on the way to work and refilled it twice so far. Fingers crossed and lots of positive energy towards your car so it lasts way beyond the time your finances are ready! 😀

Hope your day is going well – yukky weather has me thinking soup soup soup and I have now resorted to writing on my the back of my hand – No Soup – Lunch in Fridge……..got me a few weird looks as people read my hand but I don’t care.

Hi bumblebee
That’s a really good idea to look at your blocks of butter – really brings it home what we’ve been carrying around unnecessarily.

Exercises in the book??? Eeek – I don’t remember those!! Mind you, I lent my copy to my sister and I’ve not got it back yet! Big sister is certainly not overweight but she’s worried about being a TOFI. It always makes me smile where I first saw the book – in a supermarket right by their fancy bakery section – I haven’t been in that bakery section since mid-January so something’s working! 🙂

I struggle with drinking enough – I know that by the time I’m feeling thirsty it’s too late & I’m dehydrated. It’s easier at home but at work it can be difficult. I know drinking makes a real difference – last week I started one day feeling really brain-fogged which wasn’t good because I was in a 1st Aid training session in an overly warm room. But I did think to grab a mug of water which I sipped regularly & kept refilling – by the end of the day the fog & headache had lifted. It was noticeable that I was able to concentrate much better in the afternoon than in the morning. Managed to bluff my way through to get a pass – let’s hope I never have to put the 1st Aid into practice.

The car is behaving itself so far – fingers & toes crossed it works for longer than the 50 miles it managed last week! It’s been a good little workhorse, I shouldn’t complain.

I’ve had a good day – nothing bad happened. Today I had a bowel scope screening (you get the invite from the NHS when you hit 55yrs) which was a novel experience – apparently everything appeared normal for which I am grateful.

You keep on keeping on, stay focussed, and think of how good you are going to feel as the weight drops off. I’d better sign off now (using a laptop too late in the evening doesn’t help me sleep well) – feel like a drink, too, where’s the kettle?
Take care,
Rose

Hi Rozy,

hahahaha BSD book right by the bakery section that IS funny!

I’ve got major projects at work in a job I dislike so brain fog is something I need to fix, still having issues drinking enough water. I weighed myself this morning and no further weight loss – motivated me to come into work, fill a glass and drink – only finished it now though oops!

Awesome news on the screening! its lovely being given the green light on health checks.

Yep exercises in the book, need to find my book, I left it in the kitchen and think one of my housemates must have picked it up but yeah, adding steps each day to walk more and strength resistance exercises etc. I think I will start more strictly next week. Right now just need to stay focussed and get through the weekend without falling off the wagon.

Hi bumblebee,
Bit of a late night on the forum – I tried logging on earlier and got a message saying I’d been blocked by anti-spam registration software so I had to wait for the tech people to allow me access again! I don’t post that many messages!

My sympathies with your job – years ago I was working on big project at work which I hated. About 4 or 5 months after we implemented this new system our division was closed down – what was ironic was that it was a new planning system. You got to laugh – we didn’t see that one coming! I was one of the few people who actually welcomed redundancy.

My exercise regime fluctuates – if I ease up the weight loss does slow up. Being on my feet most of the day at work I can clock up the steps but it can be more difficult when I’m at home (I work part-time). With the summer I expect to be more active in the garden & allotment but I really ought to start swimming again. Now that I’ve lost weight I shouldn’t be so shy about putting on the cozzy again – that’s another target to aim for. When I was a regular swimmer I would swim for an hour or so, doing 50-60 lengths, so I’m rather annoyed with myself that I’ve let it slip.

Good luck for another successful day!

Hi Rozy,

Swimming sounds great! Once I feel I can go out in public in a swimsuit I want to learn to swim 🙂

Don’t be hard on yourself, life happens and we get sidetracked, its ok…now you’ve come to the point of wanting to swim again which is better than never doing it again…so definitely a win!! Well done 🙂

So far so good, been sticking to my 800 calories but only lost 700g when I checked again yesterday. Im on day 6 today….was day 5 yesterday so expected sometging more than 700g….been stuck on 700g for a while now so I got annoyed and ate a whole 8oz rib eye steak with a teaspoon of English mustard and a few leaves…thought I’d be a rebel and not add up the calories but this morning weighed myself and lost 400 grams so a total of 1,1kg in a week. Not as fabulous as everyone else on here but not bad…. Ended up adding up my steak dinner calories which came to 410 so I got it in my journal 🙂 happy to say was only 60 calories over for the day and did my 10,000 steps coz my bus took forever so walked half way home…

Today I have this insatiable hunger for salmon with garlic and paprika…trying to shake it off and plan meals for the week but adding up foods which aren’t paprika salmon is making me a bit crazy with the craving so I’m going to get dressed and go to the big tesco to find some courgetti and cauliflower rice 🙂

Hope your weekend is going well…

Hi again, bumblebee,
Well, you’ve still got Day 7 before you have completed the first week. I don’t think it matters what you lose, the important thing is that you are losing weight. People who’ve had a spectacular first week often get a really slow week 2 or 3 – it’s just the way the cookie crumbles (oops, shouldn’t mention cookies). I’ve never had a majorly huge weight loss on any week – rather, the bigger the loss, the bigger the upward bounce that’s followed, and then it resettles bit by bit. Your body is still adjusting to being on the BSD – it will fight back! Don’t get frustrated if it’s slow, you will get occasions when the wheel comes off the wagon, but you just start again – but it does get easier as your body gets used to the new regime. Better you have an insatiable craving for salmon with garlic & paprika than something loaded with the sugar demon!
Hope your trip to Tesco was successful – I still quite enjoy perusing the reduced counter because you can get some decent cuts of meats. I am able to ignore the sweet treats I’m happy to say.
My weekend starts on Sunday – I work Saturdays – so I hope to spend time up at the allotment planting out more runner beans. Things are coming along nicely at the plot – I’ll have to spend more time up there over the next few weeks.
Anyway, you have a good weekend!

Hi All, I had planned to just have a nosy at the forums for a bit of inspiration, however here I am posting.
I was given the BSD book by my mum 2 weeks ago and gave it a halfhearted crack. Although my attempt was halfhearted I have lost 3.5kg in the 2 weeks.
I never get results like that, so am so inspired to do this for real (no cheating by day 3 this time). The past 2 weeks seem to have shown me that I have a massive fear of hunger. Is anyone else like that?
Seeing so many of you speak of exercise makes me realise that I must get up and get out for a walk (having a sleep in. Am in NZ so very different time zone to most of you I think)
Anyway just wanted to let you know that your second attempts have made me decide to do the BSD properly rather than continue my ‘sort of counting calories’ version.

Go Barrelonlegs! We are happy to have you join us!! We probably ALL have fear of hunger, whether physical or psychological (😜😜) but we all understand the difficulties of changing our habits and lives — you are welcome here. Good wishes for the future. Settle in, write and share. You are in good company.

Hi Barrelonlegs

Welcome to the family. Glad you’ve decided to join us. You’ll get lots of support on here. Now we’re in so many countries there’s usually someone around to help 😃

Hello so pleased to have found this thread. Started 10 days ago and have sabotaged myself every day since then, lots and lots of emotional eating. So in viscous cycle of eating carbs then feeling guilty then berating myself.
Sound familiar?
Any advice please have any of you felt the same?
Thank you xxx

And another one …. I started this back in January, and I can’t remember why I stopped, but I did. And fell off the wagon big time. Since then I’ve gained 10lbs in weight but more scary is my recent blood tests have shown my HbA1c increased from 48 to 87! ( that’s the new units it’s measured in, in old money it’s gone from 6.5 to 10.2). Plus my total cholesterol is up from 6.2 to 11!!! Consequently my GP has doubled my statins, and wanted to start me on metformin, but I have a reprieve for 8 weeks. And in that time I have to show her that I can control this, and I am able to choose the right foods. This is the only way I can think of doing it.
I know I can do this really, but for the last few months I’ve eaten nothing but carbs, despite knowing that my metabolism just can’t handle it. I’m not surprised by my blood results, just bitterly disappointed in myself for letting it happen. There is an emotional element to my eating patterns that I really have to come to terms with, although I’m not sure how I’m going to do that, but I know I risk death if I don’t , quite literally I am eating myself to death. It has to stop. Now.

Tibetan, Yes it does sound familiar. I get so cross with myself for eating the wrong things, yet I can’t seem to stop myself from doing it. The last three weeks I have lived almost exclusively on chocolate. I mean is that stupid or what???

Hey Tibetan! Hey Stephie63! Good to have you here — you are in good company. We have all been there too — eating too much of the wrong stuff — it’s not a disaster, don’t panic, just start again tomorrow. I like to use 56 4×6 sticky notes, each numbered 1-56 and every day I pull off a fresh one, which reminds me it is a new day, a clean slate, and (if I messed up yesterday) I can start fresh again today. They are easy to carry, stick to my I-phone screen and I write down the totals in my calendar at the end of the day. Try to identify what is setting you off into the eating pattern — is it stress, too much alcohol, frustration with some aspect of the day? If you can identify it, you can neutralize it with whatever coping strategy works for you (for me it is a pot of hot tea, some time in the garden pulling weeds, shopping (non-food store 😄). One day at a time works — do not think about eight weeks, just think about this minute, today. Start again!! You will get stronger with practice. You CAN do this!! Lots of support here — keep posting.

What a fab idea with the post it notes. Am going to give that a go. Off to the shop tomorrow to stock up! Cheers for the tip.
Stephie63 please don’t berate yourself so much for your eating. We are pretty much all here because of our food choices. We need to do this but also be kind to ourselves.
I was once advised by a wise woman to give myself some sweetness in my life. What she means is that I keep treating myself instead of deprivation. Buy a nice bath oil, take time to sit down and read, just treating myself but without eating. It is amazing (when I do remember to take time for myself). It is so easy to put everyone else’s needs above our own that the time constraints and stress lead to poor food choices.
That said I have once again let the stress get the better of me today and have scoffed down a packet of chips/crisps.
Tomorrow is another day!

Week one complete, in the bag with no major mishaps – woooohoooo!
Had a big steak Friday night but totalled my calories for the week and still was under the 5600 total so happy days.

On day 2 of week 2 – still not lost anything yet but I feel so alive its insane! I had a really really late night last night – I work in research so sometimes fieldwork has me out till late hours – By the time I had five minutes to eat it was already 10pm and the only reason I ate was because I was 400 calories under for the day – lunch at 12:30….energy levels over the moon and stunned I was not starving and eating off my fingers! Glad I stuck with it – Thanks Rozy you were inspiration for my staying on the wagon! How’s your week going?Tesco trip was awesome – passed by the reduced counter and got some gorgeous SALMON fillets – was so thrilled! Also got some beautiful rib eye steaks – so pretty I wanted to hug them! Hope you had fun in the sun and your runner beans are doing well….have a great week and catch up soon 🙂

Lovely to see new names on here too!
Hi all! 🙂

@barrelonlegs – This is wonderful to hear you’re motivated to give the BSD your all. Trust me once you get into week two you’ll have so much energy you’ll WANT to walk or run or jump or something. I was not motivated to do any exercise in the beginning – was feeling blah and a bit tired but now I sleep like a baby, up at first light and then just on full charge the whole day – I get home late but still have enough time to do chores and some yoga and mindfulness before bed. Waking up is a pleasure now because I WANT to get up and live. Yep NZ is quite a different time zone and you’re coming towards winter now which is fantastic as you start on the BSD you’ll be bikini ready by summer ;-). One thing that helps me on cold days are miso soup and my self made 25 calorie soup sachets of a quarter bullion cube, some seaweed strips and a few dehydrated mushrooms. Winter needs warming foods for me – makes me happy! 😀 Good luck and great to have you here!

Hi Tibetan – How are you getting on?
Slip ups happen the best thing I found is to be gentle with myself and i dug really deep to see where the guzzling food comes from – Its a work in progress but I have now realised I get sad (had a yukky emotional year last year) then i nomnomnom stuff food down and mentally in eating supress my emotions like the more i eat the deeper I bury them. I now let myself feel whatever I feel and am gentle on myself – also tell myself I live with shops and takeaways and restaurants on my doorstep – I wont starve there is tons of food around me so I dont need to stock up – I only shop enough for one week, keep no snacks in the house aside from Bottled sparkling water, one small 50g pack of almonds, chicken stock/bullion cubes, seaweed and one pack of dry mushrooms.
My advice would be don’t push too hard or you set yourself up to fail – instead plan and organise your week in advance, plan your meals, keep a food diary, give yourself points for water had and steps walked – I’ve worked a points system where at every 10 points I put £10 away – either to spend on a treat or towards a bigger gift to myself.
Every day where I stick to food goals I give myself half a point – water goals half a point, exercise goal 1 point. so £2 a day incentive ;-)….Just try new things and see what works for you and don’t beat yourself up – every day is day one of a fresh start you’ll get there! This group is amazing and have helped and motivated me to stick with it! 🙂 This is coming from someone who threw out food then dug it out of the bag to eat!!!!

@stephie63 – Don’t get angry with yourself hun, it will be ok – Everyone needs love, support and compassion to beat this – you need to give yourself that love and compassion too. Its ok whatever happened in the past is gone – fresh start and one meal at a time – dont think of deprivation or feeling hungry – I was eating 4000 calories a day before I started – put on 30kg in a year and was so addicted to carbs i used to dream of donuts and pizza and pastries – now I walk through Sainsbury’s and tell the croissants ‘You’re not the boss of me!’

Like Californiagirl says you’re in good company, we’ve been there and thats what this group is for – slip ups happen its not about beating yourself up its about getting back on the wagon and going with it. you can definitely do this….take it from someone who started her day with a burger king double whopper meal with extra hash browns on the side and maple syrup…and full fat full sugar coke. Its thinking too far ahead that makes the fear feel suffocating – just go with it and say to yourself – i can have it tomorrow IF i choose to but for today i’m going to go with it. Also clear out all snack draws, crisps, bad foods etc if its there you end up eating it – I thought i’d never be able to survive without my two BIG bags of kettle crisps a day in the evening watching TV but that’s because I kept buying them that I was eating them not because I was hungry. Mindfulness is really helping me alot as well. before I put anything in my mouth I ask – Why does bumblebee want to eat this – bumblebee tummy are you hungry – bumblebee mind are you bored – bumblebee hands are you idle – bumblebee logic is it because its food time so you might as well??? Crazy as it may sound it works for me – just got to find what works for you hun and be gentle.

Hello BarrelonLegs (not for much longer, I bet), Tibetan & Stephie63 – welcome to the club!
Lots of sound advice above, can’t really add to it. We feel your pain re falling off the wagon – it’s a case of been there, seen it, eaten it, felt bad about it, BUT you just dust yourself down and start again. Yes, there will be hurdles but we overcome them – there’s so much helpful advice on this website. You’ve made a conscious decision to try the BSD so give it a chance – remember, you are in control.

Hi bumblebee – SOOO glad you are feeling great. I am genuinely touched that you found my messages helpful – not sure I’ve ever been an inspiration to anyone before! Thank you.

Good luck everyone!

Thank you all for your comments and support, I really am ready to do this and I’m determined I will succeed this time.

you’re awesome Rozy! you’re welcome! 🙂

well done Stephie63 – the deciding part is more than half the battle won already! Wooo hoooo!

So I went over my 800 cals yesterday – I was so hungry and I realised its the afternoon coffee I had made me insane with hunger to the point I could have eaten the paper cup!!!!.

Luckily I told myself – bee if you’re hungry eat your food don’t eat rubbish! So I ate one of my home cooked meals then had 3 baby babybels and a cup of tea. total for the day added up to 1227 calories.

I weighed myself this morning – I didn’t put on weight thank goodness but wanted to know does this mean I’ve got to start counting Day 1 from Today to get to 8 weeks? or….Do I eat lesser calories the next few days to make up for the extras from yesterday? I’m so sad and upset I cried myself to sleep from guilt – luckily its spring/summer so I can come in to work and pretend its ‘allergies’ that gave me puffy eyes!

Today is another day 🙂

Congratulations on not stuffing yourself with cream cakes or crisps or chips, you had a wonderful success with a home-cooked meal and some Babybels – great choices!

As far as I am concerned, your 8 week journey continues, and you should just carry on planning for 800 calories, and probably over the time this very minor blip will average out! After all, you were only 427 calories over, which would be about 7 days of 740 calories! No worries!

However, if you really got the munchies, perhaps you should look at your food via something like My Fitness Pal, and see if you are giving yourself enough fat to make up for the lesser calories? Don’t forget you need to keep it balanced. I found it really helpful to enter my food in, and make decisions about how many grams of carbs and so on.

Good luck and you are a success, not a failure!

Hi bumblebee
I did exactly the same yesterday, I was out all day and didn’t plan my eating properly, so by the time 7pm came around I was ravenous and ate a kfc! It was the ‘healthiest’ option available to me at the time but it took my calorie count way over. But you know what? I’m not going to beat myself up about it, it’s one day. So today I will be back on track, and I’ll learn that next time I need to plan it better. And no I don’t think it means you have to start all over again, just chalk it up to experience and move forward.

Hi Bumblebee
Today is over, just pick up where you left off as of now, not tomorrow. No going back to day 1, no eating less calories to make up for it, just get back on the wagon and move forward.
For me, this is my new life as this is the chance for a healthy me forever, not just 8 weeks.
You can do it, I know you can😀
Linda